I'm sitting here, listening to the new Illdisposed album, Sense the Darkness. I enjoy a ton of the riffing and song structure, but it certainly isn't anything ground breaking. That said, I feel like Bo Summer's vocals on the album improve it from "good" to "great" and bring a whole new dimension to an otherwise "just above par" album.

Another example of great vocals comes from this year as well, with Witchcraft's latest, Legend. Though the well orchestrated bass lines intertwined with awesome riffing is what drives the album most for me, Pelander's haunting clean vocals bring an element that a lesser vocalist would not have been able to elicit.

For me, vocals can take an otherwise ordinary sounding band and catapult them from average/good to great. Vocals can also take an awesome band/album and catapult it to amazing (IMO Halford does this on Painkiller)

We've had plenty of discussion on how vocals can hinder a band, and who has the best vocals in the business. What I'm interested in discussing though, is what bands/albums have vocals have that actually improve the material?

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ngwoo wrote:

Cyrax666 wrote:

I also wonder what the reward would be for it? Perhaps a drinking session with them? A stroll through the woods with Abbath perhaps?

I feel that Cattle Decapitation wouldn't be as good if Travis Ryan wasn't their vocalist. Especially on Monolith of Inhumanity. He's one of the more versatile vocalists in death metal/deathgrind.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mgNLE4GHvk

Joined: Sat Dec 24, 2011 2:16 pmPosts: 7807Location: The Land Down Under (no, not THAT one)

Posted: Sat Nov 17, 2012 3:09 pm

Oh yes, there are some cases where the vocalist greatly improves a band's music. iAm mentioned Anaal Nathrakh, and I thoroughly agree. Yes, the sharp riffing and absurdly aggressive percussion convey a big sense of chaos all by themselves, but without Dave Hunt's monstrous bellows and throat-shredding screams (not to mention his beautiful cleans), the music would lose a lot of its charm.

Another great example of such a thing I can think of is Soundgarden, mostly from Badmotorfinger and backwards; you have this dense as fuck songs filled to the brim with Iommi-esque riffs that are dirtier than a gutter and meaner than an Tasmanian devil, with Chris Cornell's unbelievable wails gliding over it all. The contrast is big, but the effect is breathtaking.

There are many more examples, but those are two of the best that come to mind right now.

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Napero wrote:

(...) Bolt Thrower is to the soul what coffee is to the earthly shell.

Queensryche has always struck me as that kind of a band. Particularly for a couple of albums after Operation: Mindcrime when their musical quality went downhill. Geoff Tate's vocals have always been fairly impressive. Of course after Promised Land, everything was basically terrible.

Kamelot is also a good example. I think their music would be pretty boring without Roy Khan. I have yet to check out their new album with their new singer.

Candlemass - Epicus Doomicus Metallicus. Messiah is really good too, but Johan Lanquist is on a-whole-nother level. Like Albert Witchfinder, one of the best in the business. Musically the album is really strong, but I don't think it would be the all time classic it is with someone else singing on it, even Messiah.

Black Hole (Italy). Technically, Robert Measles is not a good singer at all. But the way his vocals are recorded--very distant and lots of reverb (I think that's the right word)--his voice gets a very spooky sound that fits the music like a glove. The already great music gets a huge lift from the vocals.

Not their mid-era stuff like Epica and Black Halo. That's outstanding music no matter how you shake it.

I was referring to Ghost Opera and later.

Haha, well yeah, true enough, those albums are mostly pop-metal centered around the vocals. The new album I think would still be good music without the vocals, as it's more adventurous and like the old stuff with more dynamic riffs and melodies, but the vocals and lyrics definitely make it even better than it would be otherwise.

Agree w/ the Cattle Decapitation comment above, too. I suppose it could be ditto for Murder Construct.

The best slam/brutal death vocals have to be by Bodysnatch - Insights Of A Rotten Theatre (2011). The vocals really stand out and elevate an already fantastic album - a difficult feat within the genre, IMO. It's not often vocals get praised with this type of music, but damn are they good!

For me, if death metal vocals don't get in the way or stand out in a bad way then they are usually good enough. I love the music part of things. Especially guitars. There are more bands that the vocals turn me off than turn me on, so to speak. When the vocals do stand out in a good way it's noteworthy, and this thread is a really cool idea.

How about King Diamond's career? I can't say Mercyful Fate or King Diamond would be viable bands w/out his vocals. That said, the style of music is really predicated on vocals. Bands like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and others ride a vocalist to soar. That's the distinction w/ other forms of metal that interests me - how many truly stand out in line with this topic as far as bands not really based around vocals?

How about King Diamond's career? I can't say Mercyful Fate or King Diamond would be viable bands w/out his vocals. That said, the style of music is really predicated on vocals. Bands like Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and others ride a vocalist to soar. That's the distinction w/ other forms of metal that interests me - how many truly stand out in line with this topic as far as bands not really based around vocals?

I would say King's vocals are absolutely essential to the Melissa album. On pretty much the rest of the MF and the KD albums I've heard, they're not as good. On Melissa, he strikes a perfect balance between the wild falsetto and the lower gruff sounding vocal. It really carries the album.

I know it's not a popular opinion, but I think Mikael Akerfeldt's vocals improve the quality of later Opeth. I really dig his style/sound (both clean and dirty) and particularly on an album like Damnation where there is more vocals his singing seems to elevate the inconsistent songwriting.

I feel that Cattle Decapitation wouldn't be as good if Travis Ryan wasn't their vocalist. Especially on Monolith of Inhumanity. He's one of the more versatile vocalists in death metal/deathgrind.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mgNLE4GHvk

dude cattle decapitation is the best fucking band.ever

_________________"Grow-Room is church temple of the new stoner breedChants Loud-Robed priest down on to the freedom seedBurnt offering redeems – completes smoked deliveranceCaravans’ stoned deliverance"-Sleep's Dopesmoker

I'm pretty sure that Overkill wouldn't be nearly as entertaining if Bobby wasn't behind the mic. He always sounds like he's having too much fun, which always puts a smile on my face. That kind of passion is just infectious.

Sonata Arctica also wouldn't be the same without Tony. The musical aspect of the band has never been anything revolutionary, but I think he makes it make sense. It's one of those things where when the creator of something actually believes in his/her product, it makes it that much more likeable. I don't think they could have otherwise pulled off the likes of White Pearl, Black Oceans or Destruction Preventer had it been anyone else singing them.

I'm pretty sure Nocturnal Breed would be a mediocre band if it wasn't for Destroyer's ferocious vocals.Sure, they could just get a weaker vocalist and they'd still be one of the best blackened/thrash bands out there with their blazing riffs, but that man's a beast.

New Cattle Decapitation is really one of the best examples for this, especially when Travis uses the unconventional semi-clean vocals and adds a whole new level of atmosphere to the music.

Another example I can think of is Code's "Resplendent Grotesque", where Kvohst does some of the most haunting clean singing I ever heard, and his harsh vocals aren't inferior either. The vocals make me easily prefer this album over their debut.

The very first thing that comes to mind are the vocals of Flemming Rönsdorf in By Inheritance. I feel like he just raises the entire album to completely new heights. I looked up a video of them live from 1991 (I think) and there was a vocalist other than Flemming Rönsdorf and it did not sound like artillery I'm familiar with. I'll probably look like a fanboy really fast here, but he's probably my favorite thrash metal vocalist ever on By Inheritance. I didn't care for previous artillery albums (not to mention their later stuff) as much as By Inheritance though. However, I don't think By Inheritance wouldn't be as great an album without this vocalist.

Diabolis Interium wouldn't be nearly as intense if it had had any other vocalist other than Caligula. The blood curdling scream that he does at the beginning of the title track is pretty damn phenomenal. There's also Helmuth, he's never really had a bad vocal performance, neither has Ross Dolan.

Without Patrick Walker's vocals, that album would be boring as fuck. It's really the highlight of the album. Tho there's plenty of people out there who don't like the vocals, it took me awhile to get into them but now I really like them.

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Gelseth_Andrano wrote:

You'd think people who would be on a journey to convert those to their beliefs would be a bit less face-rapey about it. Most people don't usually like the face rape.

I wouldn't like Judas Priest nearly as much without Rob Halford's vocals. Don't get me wrong, Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing are amazing guitarists but Halford is really the one who makes Priest so awesome in my opinion. Also, Iron Maiden weren't extremely popular without Bruce Dickinson and they didn't really take off until he joined the band. I love their first two albums with Paul Di'Anno, however, and find them to be really underrated. Gorgoroth is another band that comes to mind as Pest really made them stand out for me. He has one of the greatest black metal voices of all time in my opinion.

I'm gonna say Alice in Chains.Sure, the instruments are good by themselves, but Layne's style of singing really makes the band.

I have no idea why I didn't bring this up...probably because Jerry Cantrell also does strong backing vocals to make the sound and writes the music (large majority, anyway), but Layne's vocals really made AIC. I agree 100%. My favorite vocalist ever, as well.

Brings up the idea of Chris Cornell's vocals and Soundgarden...I think a case can also be made there.

-Matthew "Chalky" Chalk in (2003) Psycroptic - The Scepter Of The Ancients.-Chino Moreno in Deftones.-Robert Smith in The Cure.-Niklas Kvarforth in Shining.-Kristoffer Rygg in Ulver.-Jello Biafra in Dead Kennedys.-Abbath Doom Occulta in Immortal.-Ihsahn in Emperor....

After a bit of thought, I may have to go with Tarja formerly of Nightwish for this one. She really takes songs like Passion And The Opera and 10th Man Down to an almost ethereal level with her vocal lines.

Also, there is no singer but Ian Gillan that could've pulled off the songs on Born Again. Disturbing The Priest has some of the wicked laughter you'll hear.

Also, there is no singer but Ian Gillan that could've pulled off the songs on Born Again. Disturbing The Priest has some of the wicked laughter you'll hear.

Personally, I thought Gillan's performance on the Born Again album is way better than most of his performances with Deep Purple that I've heard (his first initial run with the band) except for Child In Time.

Personally, I thought Gillan's performance on the Born Again album is way better than most of his performances with Deep Purple that I've heard (his first initial run with the band) except for Child In Time.

Without Patrick Walker's vocals, that album would be boring as fuck. It's really the highlight of the album. Tho there's plenty of people out there who don't like the vocals, it took me awhile to get into them but now I really like them.

Sear, especially with Tapsa Kuusela. The riffs are hardly outstanding, and although the grim, morbid atmosphere makes the music enjoyable, the vocals truly make it great.

Alan Averill's vocals are clearly an integral part of Primordial music. The drawn-out compositions are essentially held together by his vocals especially in Storm Before the Calm and The Gathering Wilderness. His incredible delivery, vast range and storytelling is such an important aspect of the music that it would never function in that form without a vocalist as excellent as him.

Sear, especially with Tapsa Kuusela. The riffs are hardly outstanding, and although the grim, morbid atmosphere makes the music enjoyable, the vocals truly make it great.

Alan Averill's vocals are clearly an integral part of Primordial music. The drawn-out compositions are essentially held together by his vocals especially in Storm Before the Calm and The Gathering Wilderness. His incredible delivery, vast range and storytelling is such an important aspect of the music that it would never function in that form without a vocalist as excellent as him.

I can't believe that Nemtheanga out of my original post. I love Primordial's instrumentation as well, but as you said his vocals hold everything together so well. Nemtheanga is one of very few vocalists who can give me chills even though I have heard the song hundreds of times.

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ngwoo wrote:

Cyrax666 wrote:

I also wonder what the reward would be for it? Perhaps a drinking session with them? A stroll through the woods with Abbath perhaps?

well, I don't "care" about those on DMDS. Can't really say why. When the whole 2nd wave BM started I was fully into it and as such DMDS was kind of omni-present so to say. I just never cared about the album apart from the song "Funeral Fog" and liking Attila's weird vocals. With all those "starting albums" of the 2nd wave at hand (tape ), DMDS was my least liked... Of course it's historical and infleuncing position is undoubtly, it was just not "my" album. That's all...